US Employment Market Has Regained Its Dynamic Edge

Good news on the employment front. The July JOLTS data were released this morning and showed the total nonfarm hires level is at its highest level in 80 months (Nov 2007). In addition, the employment market seems to have regained some of its dynamic advantage as job openings and and the number of people quitting are both at multi-year highs. The job openings level was basically unchanged from June which means it is still at its highest level since February 2001. Meanwhile, the quits level reached its highest point in just over 6 years. This is a good sign as it would indicate that workers are more confident that they will be able to find another job if they quit their current job. This confidence was lacking for the first three or four years of the recovery.